The Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. signed an agreement with the mayors of Asturias and Tuburan and school heads of eight beneficiary schools for the second batch of the school repair last June 13 at the Eduardo Aboitiz Studies Center.
RAFI allocated P8.2 million for the repair of 28 old and dilapidated classrooms of Asturias Central School, Agbanga Primary School, Agtugop Elementary School, Tag-amakan Elementary School, Sandayong Elementary School, Carmelo Elementary School, Daan Lungsod Elementary School and Tuburan Central School.
The local government units (LGUs) of Asturias and Tuburan will shoulder the 30 percent of the labor cost as their counterpart.
The deal also includes the establishment of an indigenous tree nursery in each school. The two LGUs’ will provide fund of P10,000 for the purpose.
“I am so happy that our two schools are included in this batch. For me, applying for this project is very risky but because of the support from the LGU and parents, I pursued my application for school repair knowing that it is for the benefit of the schoolchildren,” said Eliseo Leones Jr., school head of Agtugop and Agbanga Elementary Schools.
For Asturias Mayor Alan Adlawan, whose municipality has been a beneficiary of the program since 2009, said being part of the program will encourage the schools to improve their performance.
“Repairing school buildings is part of improving the quality of education. We always would like to be part of this program. It’s more of a challenge for us. Every time RAFI repairs schools in Asturias, we are challenged to perform well,” Adlawan said.
Aiming for a broader impact in the field of education, RAFI, through the SRP, seeks to not just change the physical condition of schools but also enhance the quality of learning and teaching inside the classroom.
“The classroom is a child’s home away from home. It is where students spend most of their day and where much of their development occurs. When children and teachers feel physically safe and comfortable in their classrooms, they are motivated to come to school and are able to focus their attention on their central task: teaching and learning,” Amaya Cristina Aboitiz, deputy director for operations of RAFI, explained.
The repair of dilapidated schools will start this month.